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Creating video content

Video demonstrations and lectures have become a staple of the blended and online (augmented) classrooms, and are also an effective tool for face-to-face students to review key material or instructions from their studio practice, lectures or tutorials. A number of DSC staff have been working on resources like this through the Semester 1 Global Learning by Design projects.

The video below features examples from the K-12 space, but shows a range of what is possible, including student-generated content, a lab demonstration, DIY whiteboard lectures and even sports coaching.

There are a number of ways to capture content with the technology you probably already have in your office, or on you currently, including a computer with a webcam and microphone, or a smartphone or tablet. (If you are doing this with an RMIT account, you will first need to opt-in to Google Additional Services at RMIT.)

This post covers some hints on how to set up your camera and lighting, as well as resources for creating video using:

Online tools like Google Hangouts on Air and Echo360

The built-in applications on a computer

A smartphone or tablet

Before you get started, look at the setup of your space

The way you setup your webcam setup, lighting and microphone can have an enormous impact on the quality of the final product:

1. Capture online

Using Echo360

Echo360 can capture webcam video, audio and screen capture your computer desktop. The system publishes recordings to the Echo360 server, which are available to students via the EchoCentre link within Blackboard courses. Before you start using this system you must register for Echo360 and then download the software.

Using Google Hangouts on Air

Through Hangouts on Air you can capture your webcam or share your computer screen, and then automatically create a recording on Youtube. If you’re familiar with Google Hangouts video conferencing you’ll notice that the ‘on Air’ interface is the same but the process to set one up is different. Before you start, make sure your computer has a webcam and microphone. For more information on recording with Hangouts on Air:

Using a Windows computer

PCs that run Windows 8 have a built-in video capture application, and Windows Movie Maker is a free video editing application. Please note that RMIT computers run Windows 7 so the following solution does not apply unless you’re using a home computer.

Content created by Digital learning DSC for this site is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license.

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